Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1887-11-14

AT THE RAILWAY STATION.
the assembly and another contingent of Cen |
trail Labor organizations. the Painters union |
furnishing the largest representation. The |
Engel division included large delegation |
from the Carpenters union, all wearing red |
emblems. Around tue hearse a scarlet nan
ner was festo oned, AMI on its top there |
rested wreath of bright red roses The
hearse with the suicide i.ingg was the last in
line, and in the first carriage that followed
it sat his sweetheart, Eda Friedel
Bet the most remarkable feature of the
procession was yet TO come. 1t was Il dele
CATION of 400 memtlers OF the "F0rtsnight"
German organization of women. One and
all We're dressed in deep mourning, with long
Grape wells covering their heads and reaching
TO their feet. The rear of the procession was
made up of delegations from numerous trades
societies
Along the route of the procession the
streets We're packed, but nothing OF note oc-
Cured until Fifth avenue aud Lake street
was reached. Then one-armed, gray haired
man, with a grand army badge upon his
breast Sprang from the sidewalk
to the head of the procession In
his only hand he carried a cane to
which was fastened the star and stripes,
and this he waved over his head at eyepy
step The marshal OF the day rode up and
urged him To quit, and there were cries from
those behind Of Throw him into the river
and KNOCK him out but the veteran held
his ground until the station had been reached,
when be quietly disappeared in the crowd
When passing the office Of an afternoon
paper that had favored the extension of
clemency to the condemned men cheers were
given all along the line but beyond this
tdere were no manifestations of feeling and
on the whole the procession was one of the
most quiet and orderly that has ever been
seen in Chicago.
Naldheim cemetery, where the final scene
took place, is about eight miles from Chi
cago, almost under the shadows of the Alien
helm, or German Old Peoples Home. This
was the objective point throughout the
morning foriarge numbers of people who
reached it by special trans, in carriages or on
foot, and by noon fully 800 were within the
enclosure or scattered over the half mile of
country lane between it and the station.
Thirty cars were in waiting for the funeral
party, but even after this number had made
| three trips there were thousands upon thou
| sands who we're compelled to reinquish their
intention of taking part in the final cersmo-
| MES, and bad to remain in the city.
Each casket was born from the station up
| on the shoulders of eight men, and the pro-
cession was headed by four women in deep
mourning, upon whose shoulders rested an
| immense floral crown, with smaller one of
| Grape in the interior The cotfins were placed
upon platform that had been erected i'm
| medately in front of the receiving vault,
and the $1,000 spectators gathered around.
| The shadows OF evening were falling, and
| as Capt Black stepped forward and raised
bis hand hats were taken off and deep
| siisnce fell upon the vast throng, The coun-
| sci for the men whose remains rested at his
| feet spoke at length.
| He told his hearers that they had come to do
honor to soldiers and martyrs to the truth. They
| had lost their lives in her service and they
numbered with those that in all history had died
\ for the cause. They believed
| that there were social conditions in
this country that had wrought great
injustice To large part of the people, and with
purity of sonl and singieness of purpose they had
| devoted themselves TO the cure of what they
| thought was a great and terrible wrong Their
| hearts ached for the human race and they longed
| to help it They were kind hearted, tender
manly noble men. They loved humanity. They
worshipped God by striving their utmost to
| benefit their felOwman and il was In this strife
that they offered up their lives. The people
| not standing there by the bodies of feIOns They
died for liberty, for the sacred right of untram-
| melted speech, and for humanity, and his hear
| ers should be proud that they had been their
| friends. In concluding the speaker read poem
| written it is supposed by August Spies a few days
before his death 1t expressed his perfect will
| ingness to die and the hope that his friends
| would not weep for him.
1t was dark when Capt Black concluded.
| The mannerehor sang funeral hymn and
then Robert Reltzel, editor of Der Arme
| Teufel THE Poor Devil, of Detroit, stepped
| to the front of the five collins. He spoke in
| German. Loud was his voice and excited his
manner. This is what he said
| | came with the intention to make q terrible
| accusation Not an accusation against the horde
| of church-gOers, who in their self-righteousness
| to-day rejoice in loud tones that the five
| whose remains consign to dust are dead; not
| against the hangman of this county, who is call
| ed sheriff by the brutes in human disguise who
clamor for the life and blood of the poor; not
| against the jury, who Obeye1 the mandate of the
| brutes; but against the w0rkingmen, because they
stood calmly by when five of their best men were
| fOuily and brutally murdered. In the agones of
| death these five men expected that the heinous
| crime committed against them would be- avenged
|
| pect it. Iingg, the brave the heroic the manly,
was right when be said that self-preservaton in
these days is a crime, Here in the presence of
| these murdered men, swear TO it that you will
| organize to avenge this crime, to visit 1t upon
| those who hate you
I'VE swear came the suen growl from many
1t was not possible TO identify any one in the
darkness
I'VE do affirm Isolemnlyl that we will have
| for Va do not
men who are dead, but We do grieve that in this
| century murder most foul can he committed I'M
der the guse of authority and law. We grieve
at ourselves that we dill not rise in might and
prevent this crime Think of the vow you have
| just made. Do not tremble Be mem Night is
falling fast, and l shall close. In this dark
enins, hour think of the darkness and sorrow
which society has brought over those we love
Let me appeal to you, with Herwegh:
We have now suffered long enough. Now let
us bitterly hate"
His harangue caused an irresistible out
break of applause. The untamed language
was the key which unloosened the pent-up
hatred. If that speech had been delivered In
the streets of the city, one simple word of
command would have sufficed to set free an
infuriated mob whose rage would have
known no bounds - "
1 Thomas ]. Morgan, the leader of the Soci-
alistc labor clement was the next speaker.
He was BRIEF but rancorous, and the whisp-
ering remarks that passed around the throng
were Indicative of the intoxication of hatred
Albert Curtin, editor of The Arbeiter
Zeitung, followed Morgan He is a
dangerous man in infaming the passions,
and his following is rapidly assuming
the proportions which had that
Of the one time editor of the anarchist organ
who is now in his grave is.speech was of
the most inilammatory character and aroused
the passions of bis hearers to the highest
pitch. Cheers, groans, cries greeted every
sentence.
When he had concluded the doors Of the
receiving vault were opened, and while the
mannerchor sang farewell hymn the collins,
one by one, were carried in. When the last
one had been deposited in its place the doors
were again closed and locked, the band
played final dirge and the curtain had fallen
, ont hsl las of tl,uH .l,a&xa :.